The island's pan-blue opposition camp yesterday heaped scorn on Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian for failing to listen to advice from his opposition Kuomintang rival, Ma Ying-jeou.
The two leaders came together in Taipei yesterday in a televised meeting to discuss cross-strait issues. Mr Chen and Mr Ma, whose parties have fought bitterly during the past six years, heatedly debated the cross-strait and arms procurement issues in what was their first meeting since Mr Ma became KMT chairman last year.
KMT legislative whip Pan Wei-kang said: 'Ma tried to remind Chen Shui-bian of the expectations of the public, but President Chen refused to listen. It is regrettable that the president does not want to follow the voice of the public.'
People First Party spokesman Hsieh Kung-ping said Mr Chen's failure to accept advice from the opposition served only to reveal that he was an eccentric obsessed by his radical Taiwanese ideology.
But the ruling Democratic Progressive Party described the meeting as a positive move, saying it would help ease long-standing political bickering between the authorities and the opposition.
However, analysts said Mr Chen and Mr Ma failed to find any common ground that could pave the way for reconciliation between the pro-independence pan-green camp and the pro-unification pan-blue camp.
